Full-Service Outdoor Living & Luxury Pool Company, 20-Year Metro Atlanta Contractor

$3.7M

Revenue

$720K

SDE

4.2x

Multiple

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Full Editorial Writeup

This is a 20-year-old outdoor living and landscape contractor operating in Metro Atlanta's premium residential market, based in Flowery Branch, Georgia. The core business is high-end landscaping and outdoor living construction, and in 2022 the owner layered on a dedicated luxury pool brand to capture more of the same affluent homeowner's project budget. Together they generate roughly $3.73M in annual revenue and about $720K in owner cash flow, a healthy 19% margin for a project-based construction business.

The strategic logic here is straightforward. A homeowner spending six figures on a backyard is a natural cross-sell candidate for a pool, hardscape, and planting package, so bundling landscape and pool under one roof raises average ticket and reduces customer acquisition cost per dollar of revenue. The 20-year track record in a wealthy, growing suburban corridor north of Atlanta gives the business referral density and reputation that newer entrants cannot easily replicate.

The flag to note is that this serves discretionary luxury demand. Backyard pools, custom outdoor kitchens, and premium landscape installs are among the first projects affluent buyers defer when the economy tightens or home equity contracts. The recurring maintenance side, if it exists at scale, would soften that cyclicality, but the headline is a project-driven business tied to high-end home improvement spend.

Why we like it

Earnings quality is solid on the surface: $720K of cash flow on $3.73M of revenue is a 19% margin, which is strong for construction and outdoor living work where 8-12% is more typical. The 4.17x multiple on cash flow is a fair-to-attractive entry point for a business with two decades of operating history.
The two-decade track record in Metro Atlanta's premium residential corridor is a real moat. Referral-driven high-end contractors compound reputation over time, and 20 years of completed projects in wealthy suburbs like Flowery Branch and the broader north Atlanta market creates a word-of-mouth engine that new competitors cannot buy.
Metro Atlanta continues to see strong population and high-income household inflow, which supports sustained demand for luxury outdoor living even if the segment is cyclical. Suburban Georgia has been one of the faster-growing wealthy corridors in the Southeast over the past decade.
The pool brand launched in 2022 is a genuine cross-sell and margin expansion lever. Landscape and pool projects target the identical affluent homeowner, so bundling raises average project value and lets the acquirer amortize marketing and design costs across a larger ticket.

How to improve it

Build or expand a recurring pool and landscape maintenance program with monthly or seasonal service contracts. This converts one-time project customers into predictable recurring revenue, smooths the cyclicality of luxury installs, and materially raises the multiple a future buyer will pay.
Formalize the cross-sell motion between the landscape and pool brands so every landscape lead is systematically offered a pool package and vice versa. Track attach rates and average project value monthly, because even a modest lift in bundling drives outsized revenue on the existing lead flow.
Audit and tighten project-level gross margins with job costing on labor, materials, and subcontractors. Custom construction leaks profit through change orders and material overruns, and installing disciplined estimating and change-order billing can add several margin points quickly.
Systematize lead generation beyond referrals by investing in a strong local SEO presence, a portfolio-driven website, and paid search for high-intent terms like luxury pool builder Atlanta. A 20-year referral business often underinvests in digital demand generation, leaving a clear growth lane.
Reduce owner dependence by documenting the sales, design, and project management processes and elevating a general manager or lead estimator. Buyer valuation and future exit both hinge on whether the business can win and deliver projects without the founder in every meeting.
Standardize design packages and pricing tiers for common outdoor living configurations to speed the sales cycle and improve close rates. Productizing the offering reduces custom quoting time and lets the team scale project throughput without proportional overhead growth.

Diligence notes

Break down revenue and cash flow between the legacy landscape business and the 2022 pool brand. The pool line is only about two years old, so confirm whether the $720K cash flow is durable or inflated by a recent one-time backlog surge before crediting it as normalized earnings.
Pressure-test the cyclicality by pulling monthly revenue for 2020 through today and mapping it against interest rate moves and housing activity. Luxury outdoor living is discretionary, so you need to see how the business performed when high-end home spending softened.
Examine the customer concentration, backlog, and pipeline. Confirm signed contracts versus verbal commitments, deposit terms, and whether the current backlog reflects sustainable demand or a temporary bulge that would leave a new owner short after close.
Verify labor structure, subcontractor relationships, and licensing. Pool construction requires specific trade licenses and skilled crews, so confirm which licenses are personal to the seller, whether key crew or subs will stay, and the transition plan for any owner-held credentials.
Scrutinize working capital and job accounting. Construction businesses tie up cash in materials, deposits, and work in progress, so understand the true working capital need and whether the SDE reflects real cash generation net of the capital the business consumes.

Source

Originally listed on Sunbelt Business Brokers. View original listing →